Last month I spoke for a school in-service, helping inspire nearly 400 staff to meet the challenges of the upcoming year with a positive mindset.

Teachers, paras, cooks, custodians, security, administration and others face great challenges in today's world as they try to prepare students for success. One of the greatest strategies they have is to remember that those students and their parents/grandparents are actually their form of "customers."

What does that give them? A focus on service, a joy in knowing they make a difference, a reminder to never give up, a chance to remember that those students who drive them crazy are the reason--the only reason--they have their jobs.

A focus on creating a great experience also requires a commitment to take care of yourself. I call it "Self Care for Real Life," and it helps all of us remember that while service is critical, so is the job of taking care of us so we CAN be there for those we serve.

This month, if you would like to receive my free 15 week program, connect with me at deedee@deedeeraap.com. You will get an ezine each Monday for 15 weeks, each designed to give you simple, yet solid strategies for self care.

Back to school means back to real life for schools across the country. Here's hoping for a wonderful, SAFE experience for everyone this school year!

It can be very frustrating to be an airplane passenger in today's world. If you fly first-class, or purchase another upgrade, you might be immune to what others face: more seats installed, resulting in less space; delays related to maintenance issues you would think could be detected BEFORE passengers get on board; and cold planes.

Of all of those, the cold plane showed me the lack of quality. When I fly, I wear layers, I carry a light blanket, I wear socks. And still, one day on a flight, I was so cold I had to complain. The stewardess said, "Oh, I know, we always have that problem with this plane."

OK, so she was aware. That led me to the logical question: "Can I please have a blanket?" To which she replied, "Oh, no we only have those in first class."

Really? To know you have a problem with a particular product, but to not be prepared to offer alternatives or something, anything that would help?

Quality. When it's not there, and you still pay a high price, it's not much fun. Neither is freezing on flights.

This is a week of vacations and celebrations in America. We take the 4th of July seriously. We plan for it, prepare for it, enjoying the day--and perhaps the entire week--with those we love on vacations, at lakes, concerts, picnics and more.

Let's remember the reason for the day: celebrating our country's birthday, and the effort that went into creating this great democracy. An experiment for the world still plays out 242 years later, a feat not to be taken for granted.

Let's remember that service to our country is service to fellow Americans, helping to ensure America remains what she has been: a wonderful country, filled with promise, filled with ideas to solve problems and through those solutions, create hope always for a better future.

And let's remember that our experience as Americans is a pretty special experience, not to be taken for granted. Celebrate it with joy. Happy 4th of July!

Together, we really do achieve more. In service, working together spells efficiency. And that spells fast service for the customer, who knows that when people get along, they have a better chance of getting the service they think they deserve.

Teamwork affects quality and makes the job more fun. Your co-workers deserve you to be the best team member you can be. And so do you!

Teamwork requires cooperation, communication and a commitment to serve.

Work together, keep your co-workers informed, and commit to being a great part of your team every day.

An excerpt from Dee Dee's book, JourneyWords: 52 Strategies to Achieve Great Service

Customer experience should be positive, and for many customers, that means fun. Especially this time of year when families travel with their kids.

Each spring I train chamber members across the Midwest on how to deliver great service. For the past 10 years I have trained high school, college and a few older employees on how to deliver great service for the parks program at Aberdeen, SD. In a single word, the experience they create should be fun.

What makes that happen? From start, to finish, all along the yellow brick road, there are moments of experiences that make the visit fun. From the correct information on social media, to the first smiles in the visitor center, to the positive energy of staff giving their 30th train trip of the day, each contact with each visitor creates the experience that in turn creates the positive word of mouth that park programs depend on each year.

A big part of that is creating service fun for kids. Not just adults. It's a different approach, a "get down to their level" connection that produces life long customers whose memories include fun they want to share with their own kids someday.